Welsh Mysteries and Histories

While Wales is known for its beauty, choirs and love of rugby, the valleys and hillside are also home to some of Britain’s most curious cases. From missing people to unsolved murders, and the myths of Welsh folklore, there are stories to be told in every corner of the land.

Tending to be left out from the mainstream news and true crime industries, this podcast casts a sole spotlight on the murders, mysteries and histories of Wales.

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Welsh Mysteries and Histories

The Mari Lwyd

April 08, 2024 • Season 1 • Episode 3

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The Mari Lwyd is a symbol of Welsh mythology and it's a tradition that is now recognised around the world. In this episode, Mags discusses the Mari Lwyd, what we know about it's origin and how the tradition continues today.

Corresponding blog post -

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Sources
BBC (2011) Tradition of the Mari Lwyd - BBC Cymru Available at https://youtu.be/G_xFo6Hifzk?feature=shared(Accessed December 11, 2023)

Broster, H. (2019) The tradition of the Welsh Christmas horse skull: Mari Lwyd in Dinas Mawddwy - We learn Welsh. https://welearnwelsh.com/blog/welsh-christmas-horse-skull-mari-lwyd/. (Accessed: December 1, 2023)

Castleton, D. (2023) 5 Really weird Christmas Folkloric customs. https://www.davidcastleton.net/strange-christmas-folklore-customs-mari-lwyd/ (Accessed: December 1, 2023)

Christmas Traditions: The Mari Lwyd (June 14, 2014). https://museum.wales/articles/1187/Christmas-Traditions-The-Mari-Lwyd/ (Accessed: December 1, 2023)

Folk Songs – Roy Saer and folk song collecting at St Fagans (no date). https://museum.wales/collections/folksongs/?id=2(Accessed: December 1, 2023).

Http://www.folkwales.org.uk/mari.html (Accessed: December 8, 2023)

Howell, David ORCID: 0000-0002-7875-1002 (2018) Contemporising Custom: the re-imagining of the Mari Lwyd. International Journal of Intangible Heritage, 13. pp. 66-79.

Ifans, R. (2022). Stars and Ribbons: Winter Wassailing in Wales. University of Wales Press

ITV News (2022) '‘No music on a dead planet’ - New Mari Lwyd mural urging climate change action appears in Cardiff,' ITV News, 30 March. https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2022-03-30/mural-depicting-the-mari-lwyd-appears-in-cardiff-city-centre. (Accessed December 8, 2023)

Mentrau Iaith (2020) https://youtu.be/r3aXbGl5UQ4?feature=shared

Owen, T.M. (1959) Welsh Folk Customs. National Museum of Wales, J.D. Lewis and Sons Ltd, Gomerian Press, Llandysul

Peate, I.C. (1935) '88. A Welsh Wassail-Bowl: With a Note on the Mari Lwyd.,' Man, 35, p. 81. https://doi.org/10.2307/2789906.

Price, S. (2023) Mari Lwyd and the appropriation of Welsh mythology. https://nation.cymru/opinion/mari-lwyd-and-the-appropriation-of-welsh-mythology/. (Accessed December 12,2